Program for processing a live commentary, computer-readable recording medium on which such a program is recorded, and live commentary processing apparatus and method

ABSTRACT

Upon issuance of a sound reproduction request, storage locations of sound data constituting a sentence are determined. A live commentary sound is output based on the sound data that are stored in a distributed manner. At this time, the sound data in a CD-ROM are transferred to a RAM in a divisional manner. The sound data that have been transferred to the RAM are then transferred to a sound memory in a divisional manner. In this manner, even sound data of a long sentence can be read from the CD-ROM with a small number of times of access.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/628,285, filed on Jul. 28, 2000 and now U.S. Pat. No.6,458,033, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein byreference in its entirety. The present disclosure relates to subjectmatter contained in Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-174556, filedon Jun. 9, 2000, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a program for processing a livecommentary in a sport game, such as, for example, a computer-readablerecording medium on which such a program is recorded, and a livecommentary processing apparatus and method.

2. Description of the Related Art

At present, games of various sports such as tennis, soccer, basketball,American football, and baseball are available.

Among sport games are ones in which a live commentary is reproduced inaccordance with actions of players in the game. By reproducing a livecommentary, it is possible to give a user the feeling of being at thesite that is of the same kind as would be given by actual on-the-spot TVbroadcast. In general, sound data of a live commentary is data obtainedby converting an analog waveform into a digital one. Such livecommentary sound data has a longer data length than data indicatingmusical scales etc. such as MIDI (Music Instrument Digital Interface)data. Therefore, in the case of live commentary sound data, all datacannot be stored in a sound processing section which performs soundoutput. In reproducing a sound, it is necessary to transfer data from amain memory or the like to the sound processing section each time.

As an example technique for transferring live commentary sound data, agame machine having a live commentary function is known that isdisclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei. 7-163754.This publication discloses a technique in which commentary terms arespecified and transferred from a commentary term storing section to abuffer and then the data stored in the buffer is divided and divisionaldata are sequentially transferred to a sound CPU.

In recent sport games, the reality of a live commentary sound has beeninvestigated. In particular, in baseball games, reproduction of arealistic live commentary sound as in TV broadcast is required becausemost of users are accustomed to viewing baseball TV broadcast.

To realize a realistic live commentary in a video game, it is necessaryto reproduce not only simple words such as “batted” and “caught” butalso sentences including a subject and a predicate. For example, a livecommentary can be made closer to a counterpart in actual broadcast byreproducing a sound “the pitcher went into his motion to throw the firstpitch” when a defense-side user has input a manipulation for throwingthe ball.

Further, to output a live commentary sound in the form of a sentence, agreat many kinds of sound data for various game situations arenecessary. Therefore, it is necessary to reproduce a commentary sound byreading sound data each time from a large-capacity recording medium suchas a CD-ROM.

However, where sound data is transferred from such a recording medium asa CD-ROM to the sound processing section after being divided into datahaving a data length that is suitable for the storage capacity of abuffer in the sound processing section, access to the recording mediumoccurs at a high frequency. In the case of access to a large-capacityrecording medium such as a CD-ROM, certain time is needed to find targetdata. In the case of a CD-ROM, for example, a head seek time etc. areneeded.

In general, while live commentary sound data is read from such arecording medium as a CD-ROM, other data necessary for advancing thegame cannot be read from the same recording medium. In the abovecircumstances, a technique capable of reducing the number of times ofaccess to such a recording medium as a CD-ROM for readout of sound datais now demanded.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a program forprocessing a live commentary in a sport game, a computer-readablerecording medium on which such a program is recorded, a live commentaryprocessing apparatus and method which can reproduce a sound by reading,efficiently with a smaller number of times of access, sound data from arecording medium on which a large amount of sound data is stored.

To attain the above object, a first aspect of the invention provides acomputer-readable recording medium on which a program for processing alive commentary in a video game is recorded, the program causing acomputer to execute the steps of judging states of a situation in avideo game; determining a combination and order of one or more sounddata that are necessary to commentate in accordance with the judgedstates from among sound data that are stored in a distributed manner asunits of live commentary statements; recognizing storage locations ofthe one or more sound data based on information that is stored inadvance to be used for recognizing storage locations of the respectivesound data; and commentating by reading the one or more sound data fromthe recognized storage locations in the determined order.

A second aspect of the invention provides a computer-readable recordingmedium on which a program for processing a live commentary in a videogame is recorded, the program causing a computer to execute the steps ofjudging states during processing of a video game; determining, inaccordance with the judged states, code information from among pieces ofcode information that are provided in advance and each of whichcorrelates each of situations that may occur in the game and acombination and order of one or more sound data; and commentating byreading one or more sound data indicated by the determined codeinformation in order indicated by the determined code information.

A third aspect of the invention provides a program for processing a livecommentary in a video game, the program causing a computer to executethe steps of judging states of a situation in a video game; determininga combination and order of one or more sound data that are necessary tocommentate in accordance with the judged states from among sound datathat are stored in a distributed manner as units of live commentarystatements; recognizing storage locations of the one or more sound databased on information that is stored in advance to be used forrecognizing storage locations of the respective sound data; andcommentating by reading the one or more sound data from the recognizedstorage locations in the determined order.

A fourth aspect of the invention provides a program for processing alive commentary in a video game, the program causing a computer toexecute the steps of judging states during processing of a video game;determining, in accordance with the judged states, code information fromamong pieces of code information that are provided in advance and eachof which correlates each of situations that may occur in the game and acombination and order of one or more sound data; and commentating byreading one or more sound data indicated by the determined codeinformation in order indicated by the determined code information.

A fifth aspect of the invention provides a live commentary processingapparatus comprising a recording medium on which a program for realizinglive commentary processing in a video game is recorded; and a computerfor reading at least part of the program from the recording medium andfor executing it, the computer executing, by reading at least part ofthe program from the recording medium, the steps of judging states of asituation in a video game; determining a combination and order of one ormore sound data that are necessary to commentate in accordance with thejudged states from among sound data that are stored in a distributedmanner as units of live commentary statements; recognizing storagelocations of the one or more sound data based on information that isstored in advance to be used for recognizing storage locations of therespective sound data; and commentating by reading the one or more sounddata from the recognized storage locations in the determined order.

A sixth aspect of the invention provides a live commentary processingapparatus comprising a recording medium on which a program for realizingsound output processing in a video game is recorded; and a computer forreading at least part of the program from the recording medium and forexecuting it, the computer executing, by reading at least part of theprogram from the recording medium, the steps of judging states duringprocessing of a video game; determining, in accordance with the judgedstates, code information from among pieces of code information that areprovided in advance and each of which correlates each of situations thatmay occur in the game and a combination and order of one or more sounddata; and commentating by reading one or more sound data indicated bythe determined code information in order indicated by the determinedcode information.

A seventh aspect of the invention provides a live commentary processingmethod for processing a live commentary in a video game, comprising thesteps of judging states of a situation in a video game; determining acombination and order of one or more sound data that are necessary tocommentate in accordance with the judged states from among sound datathat are stored in a distributed manner as units of live commentarystatements; recognizing storage locations of the one or more sound databased on information that is stored in advance to be used forrecognizing storage locations of the respective sound data; andcommentating by reading the one or more sound data from the recognizedstorage locations in the determined order.

An eighth aspect of the invention provides a live commentary processingmethod for processing a live commentary in a video game, comprising thesteps of judging states during processing of a video game; determining,in accordance with the judged states, code information from among piecesof code information that are provided in advance and each of whichcorrelates each of situations that may occur in the game and acombination and order of one or more sound data; and commentating byreading one or more sound data indicated by the determined codeinformation in order indicated by the determined code information.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of a videogame machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 schematically shows an example data structure of a CD-ROM;

FIG. 3 schematically shows an example data structure of a RAM;

FIG. 4 shows an example of a code information table;

FIG. 5 shows an example data structure of a sound data management tablefor a sound memory;

FIG. 6 shows an example data structure of a sound data management tablefor a CD-ROM;

FIG. 7 schematically shows an example data structure of a sound memory;

FIG. 8 schematically shows a sound data transfer process according tothe embodiment;

FIG. 9 schematically shows divisional transfer of sound data stored in aCD-ROM;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a main process for advancing a game;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a sound output process;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process for reproducing sound data in aCD-ROM;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a process for reproducing sound data in asound data buffer; and

FIG. 14 shows an example of a displayed picture of a baseball game.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

An embodiment of the present invention will be hereinafter described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The followingdescription will be directed to a baseball game as an example of sportgames in which sound data of a live commentary or the like isreproduced.

First, the configuration will be described with reference to FIG. 1.FIG. 1 shows an example configuration of a video game machine accordingto an embodiment of the invention. The video game machine 10 shown inFIG. 1 has a function of outputting a sound such as a live commentarysound according to the embodiment of the invention. The video gamemachine 10 executes a program that is recorded on a computer-readablerecording medium according to the embodiment of the invention. The videogame machine 10 executes a program according to the embodiment of theinvention. The video game machine 10 is used in practice of a soundoutput method according to the embodiment of the invention.

For example, the video game machine 10 is provided with a game machinemain body 10 a for processing a video game according to a program, akey-pad 50 for manipulating a video game interactively, and a televisionset (hereinafter referred to as “TV set”) 100 having a CRT monitor 101or the like as a monitor having speakers 102 and 103. Also provided witha communication interface section 21, the video game machine 10 isconnected to a network 111 via a communication line 110 and performsdata communication with another network apparatus.

The key-pad 50 is provided with, for example, a button group such asbuttons 50 a-50 d and a joystick 50 e in such a manner that they can bemanipulated by a user (operator). The key-pad 50 provides the gamemachine main body 10 a with a command corresponding to a buttonmanipulation or a joystick manipulation by the user. Another key-pad 51is provided with, for example, a button group such as buttons 51 a-51 dand a joystick 51 e (similar to key-pad 50) in such a manner that theycan be manipulated by another user.

The buttons and the joystick have a function of inputting variousmanipulations of a baseball game (described later) such as amanipulation of throwing of the pitcher, a manipulation of a swing ofthe batter, a manipulation of base stealing by a runner, and amanipulation of catching/throwing by a fielder.

Based on a video signal and a sound signal that are output from the gamemachine main body 10 a, the TV set 100 displays a picture on a displayscreen 101 and outputs sounds from left and right speakers 102 and 103in accordance with a game situation.

The game machine main body 10 a has an internal bus 25, to which a CPU11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, and a hard disk drive (hereinafter referred toas HDD) 14 are connected.

The CPU 11 controls the entire apparatus and performs game processing bystoring part or all of a program in the RAM 13. A program, data to beread out when the game machine main body 10 a is turned on, and otherinformation are stored in the ROM 12 in advance.

A game program read from a CD-ROM 19 by a CD-ROM drive 20 and image dataof a background, a game character, etc. that are necessary duringexecution of a program are stored in the RAM 13. Sound data that is readfrom the CD-ROM 19 is also stored in the RAM 13.

A game program and image data can be supplied from the HDD 14 as well asthe CD-ROM 19. Where a game program and image data are supplied from theHDD 14, they may be stored in the recording media (hard disks) 15 in theHDD 14. A game program and image data may be stored in the hard disks 15by advance installation or downloading from the network 111 via thecommunication line 110.

An input interface section 24, a sound processing section 18, and agraphic processing section 16 are connected to the internal bus 25. Thekey-pads 50 and 51 are connected to the internal bus 25 via the inputinterface section 24. The TV set 100 is connected to the internal bus 25via the sound processing section 18 and the graphic processing section16.

The graphic processing section 16 is provided with a VRAM 17 having aframe buffer. The graphic processing section 16 generates a video signalbased on image data that is stored in the frame buffer according tocommands that are supplied from the CPU 11 during execution of aprogram, and outputs the generated video signal to the TV set 100. As aresult, a picture is displayed on the display screen 101 of the TV set100 based on the image data stored in the frame buffer.

The sound processing section 18 generates a sound signal of a voice, BGM(background music), an effect sound, or the like according to commandsthat are supplied from the CPU 11, and outputs the generated soundsignal to the TV set 100. The sound processing section 18 has a soundmemory 18 a inside. Sound data to be reproduced is stored in the soundmemory 18 a.

The CD-ROM drive 20 and a memory card reader/writer 23 are alsoconnected to the internal bus 25. The CD-ROM drives 20 reads out a gameprogram, image data, sound data, etc. that are stored in the CD-ROM 19as a recording medium. The memory card reader/writer 23 writes and readsdata to and from a memory card 22 under the control of the CPU 11.Examples of data to be written to the memory card 22 are data indicatingan intermediate state of a game and data indicating an environmentalsetting of a game.

A baseball game is executed as its program according to the embodimentis executed by the video game machine having the above configuration.The program is read from the CD-ROM 19 and stored in the RAM 13. Afterexecution of the baseball game program is started, various data are readfrom the CD-ROM 19 and stored in the memories of the video game machine10. In this embodiment, sound data as units of a live commentary arestored in the CD-ROM 19 and the sound data memory 18 a in a distributedmanner.

First, the data structure of the CD-ROM 19 will be described. FIG. 2schematically shows an example data structure of the CD-ROM 19. As shownin FIG. 2, a game program 19 a of a baseball game according to theembodiment, a game data group 19 b such as image data, a sound datagroup 19 c for sound output, and other information are stored in theCD-ROM 19.

The sound data group 19 c includes a plurality of sound data 91, 92, 93,94, . . . Among the sound data 91, 92, 93, 94, . . . , the sound data 91is commentary sound data of “threw,” for example. The sound data 92 iscommentary sound data of “the third pitch,” for example. The sound data93 is commentary sound data of “with a nothing-two count,” for example.The sound data 94 is commentary sound data of “has so far made goodpitching but has not been given any help from the batters yet,” forexample. In this embodiment, sound data are stored in consecutiverecording regions of the CD-ROM 19 in a divisional manner on asector-by-sector basis. The sector is a data management unit in theCD-ROM 19. For example, one sector is 2,048 bytes.

For example, the sound data group 19 c includes monaural sound data andstereo sound data. As for stereo sound data, left-speaker sound data andright-speaker sound data are arranged alternately. For example,one-sector sound data for the respective speakers are arrangedalternately.

Next, the data structure of the RAM 13 will be described. FIG. 3schematically shows an example data structure of the RAM 13. The RAM 13is provided with a program area 13 a, an image data area 13 b, a sounddata area 13 c, etc. Part or all of a program that is read from theCD-ROM 19 is stored in the program area 13 a. Model data of charactersto be displayed on the display screen 101 and other data are stored inthe image data area 13 b.

For example, the sound data area 13 c is provided with two sound databuffers 13 d and 13 e. A code information table 13 f, a sound datamanagement table 13 g for a sound memory and a sound data managementtable 13 h for a CD-ROM are stored in the sound data area 13 c.

The sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e are storage areas where to storetemporarily sound data that is read from the CD-ROM 19. Each of thesound data buffers 13 d and 13 e can store data of 16 sectors, forexample.

In this embodiment, the two sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e constitutea double buffer structure. That is, a series of sound data aretransferred to the RAM 13 in such a manner that while sound data is readfrom one sound data buffer, sound data is stored in the other sound databuffer. When data reading from one sound data buffer has finished, thesound data buffer as a subject of data reading and the sound data bufferas a subject of data storage are interchanged. This configuration makesit to perform transfer and reading of a series of data in a parallelmanner.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the code information table 13 f. The codeinformation table 13 f has sentence code columns and sound data codesequence columns.

The sentence code columns accommodate codes for identifying respectivesound data stored in the CD-ROM 19. In the example of FIG. 4, codes“0001,” “0002,” . . . are accommodated in the sentence code columns. Forexample, the sentence code “0001” represents “Suzuki threw the thirdpitch with a nothing-two count.” and the sentence code “0002” represents“Pitcher Suzuki has so far made good pitching but has not been given anyhelp from the batters yet.” The sentence code of a sentence to be outputis specified in a sound output request during progress of a game.

In the sound data code sequence columns, one or more sets of a storagearea code and a sound data code are accommodated from the left in orderof reproduction so as to be correlated with each sentence code. Astorage area code indicates the storage area of sound data that isindicated by the corresponding sound data code. In this embodiment, thestorage area code “01” indicates the sound memory 18 a and the storagearea code “02” indicates the CD-ROM 19. The storage area code “00” meansthat no information relating to sound data is registered in thecorresponding column. In the example of FIG. 4, storage area codes “01,”“02,” “02,” and “02” are accommodated for-the sentence code “0001” andstorage area codes “01,” “01,” and “02” are accommodated for thesentence code “0002.”

A sound data code is divided into Dir. (directory) and No. (number).Sound data for output of a sound in one storage location is identifiedby a set of Dir. and No. In the example of FIG. 4, a set of Dir. “08”and No. “01” (storage area “01”), a set of Dir. “02” and No. “01”(storage area “02”), a set of Dir. “02” and No. “02” (storage area“02”), and a set of Dir. “02” and No. “03” (storage area “02”) areaccommodated so as to be correlated with the sentence code “0001.” A setof Dir. “08” and No. “02” (storage area “01”), a set of Dir. “08” andNo. “01” (storage area “01”), and a set of Dir. “02” and No. “04”(storage area “02”) are accommodated so as to be correlated with thesentence code “0002.”

FIG. 5 shows an example data structure of the sound data managementtable 13 g for a sound memory. The sound data management table 13 g fora sound memory has Dir. columns, No. columns, head address columns, anddata length columns. A Dir. column accommodates a directory value foridentifying sound data. A No. column accommodates a number foridentifying sound data in such a manner that it is correlated with thecorresponding directory.

A head sector number column accommodates a head sector number of sounddata corresponding to the set of the associated directory and number. Adata length column accommodates a data length of sound datacorresponding to the set of the associated directory and number. Thedata length is expressed in bytes, for example. In the example of FIG.5, the sound data having Dir. “08” and No. “01” has a head address“ADD1” and a data length of 6,416 bytes and the sound data having Dir.“08” and No. “02” has a head address “ADD2” and a data length of 3,200bytes.

FIG. 6 shows an example data structure of the sound management table 13h for a CD-ROM. The sound management table 13 h has Dir. columns, No.columns, head sector number columns, and data length columns. A Dir.column accommodates a directory value for identifying sound data. A No.column accommodates a number for identifying sound data in such a mannerthat it is correlated with the corresponding directory.

A head address column accommodates a head address in the sound memory ofsound data corresponding to the set of the associated directory andnumber. A data length column accommodates a data length of sound datacorresponding to the set of the associated directory and number. Thedata length is expressed in sectors, for example.

In the example of FIG. 6, the sound data having Dir. “02” and No. “01”has a head sector number “#2055” and a data length of 10 sectors. Thatis, Dir. “02” and No. “01” indicate the storage area of the sound data91 “threw” on the CD-ROM 19. The sound data having Dir. “02” and No.“02” has a head sector number “#2100” and a data length of 3 sectors.That is, Dir. “02” and No. “02” indicate the storage area of the sounddata 92 “the third pitch” on the CD-ROM 19. The sound data having Dir.“02” and No. “03” has a head sector number “#2210” and a data length of4 sectors. That is, Dir. “02” and No. “03” indicate the storage area ofthe sound data 93 “with a nothing-two count” on the CD-ROM 19. The sounddata having Dir. “02” and No. “04” has a head sector number “#2330” anda data length of 80 sectors. That is, Dir. “02” and No. “04” indicatethe storage area of the sound data 94 “has so far made good pitching buthas not been given any help from the batters yet” on the CD-ROM 19.

Next, the data structure of the sound memory 18 a will be described.FIG. 7 schematically shows an example data structure of the sound memory18 a. The sound memory 18 a is provided with a sound data area 18 b anda buffer area 18 c. Sound data of baseball team names, player names,etc. are stored in the sound data area 18 b. For example, sound data tobe stored in the sound data area 18 b are nouns (names of persons, teamnames, etc.), verbs (“batted,” “caught,” etc.), etc.

In the example of FIG. 7, sound data 181 “Suzuki,” sound data 182“pitcher,” sound data 183 “batted,” etc. are stored. The sound data 181corresponds to the set of Dir. “08” and No. “01” and the sound data 182corresponds to the set of Dir. “08” and No. “02” (see FIG. 5). Thesesound data are read from the CD-ROM 19 when a game is started.

The buffer area 18 c is provided with four sound data buffers(hereinafter referred to as “local buffers”) 18 d-18 g in which to storesound data that are transferred from the RAM 13. The local sound buffers18 d-18 g are associated with each other so as to form two pairs. Thelocal buffers 18 d and 18 e form one pair and the local buffers 18 f and18 g form the other pair. Each pair is used as a double buffer.

The pair of local buffers 18 d and 18 e is used as a sound datarecording area in reproducing monaural sound data. The pair of localbuffers 18 f and 18 e is used as a recording area for left-side sounddata in reproducing stereo sound data.

The pair of local buffers 18 f and 18 g is not used in reproducingmonaural sound data. In reproducing stereo sound data, the pair of localbuffers 18 f and 18 g is used as a recording area for right-side sounddata.

Next, a sound data transfer process according to the embodiment will bedescribed. FIG. 8 schematically shows the sound data transfer processaccording to the embodiment. When a sound output request for the sounddata 91, for example, is issued as a game proceeds, transfer of thesound data 91 is started.

For example, if the sentence code “0001” is specified in a sound outputrequest, the sound data code sequence corresponding to the sentence code“0001” in the code information table (see FIG. 4) is referred to. Thesound data corresponding to the respective sound data codes of the sounddata code sequence corresponding to the sentence code “0001” areacquired in order from the sound data corresponding to the head sounddata code (shown at the left end in FIG. 4). In this example, first thesound data 181 “Suzuki” in the sound data area 18 b is acquired. Then,the sound data 91-93 stored in the CD-ROM 19 are acquired sequentially.

The sound data 181 in the sound data area 18 b is converted by the soundprocessing section 18 into an analog sound signal, which is output assounds from the speakers 102 and 103. The sound data 91-93 stored in theCD-ROM 19 are transferred to the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e of theRAM 13 in a divisional manner. The data stored in the sound data buffers13 d and 13 e is transferred, in a divisional manner, to the localbuffers 18 d-18 g that are provided in the buffer area 18 c of the soundmemory 18 a. Sounds are output from the speakers 102 and 103 based onthe sound data that has been transferred to the local buffers 18 d-18 g.

In this manner, in the example of FIG. 8, after the sound “Suzuki” isoutput based on the sound data 181 in the sound memory 18 a, a soundconsisting of “threw,” “the third pitch,” and “with a nothing-two count”(that are recorded on the CD-ROM 19) are output.

In the above-described manner, a sound of a live commentary statement ora comment can be output in the form of a sentence including a subject(e.g., “Suzuki”) and a predicate (e.g., “threw”). Sound output of asentence that is suitable for the states of each situation enables arealistic live commentary that is suitable for progress of a baseballgame. Further, since one sentence is formed by a plurality of sounddata, it is possible to output a sound that is suitable for any ofvarious combinations of states of each situation by changing thecombination of sound data. For example, in the example of FIG. 8, if thepitcher is going to throw the second pitch, the sound data “the thirdpitch” may be replaced by another sound data “the second pitch.”

In this embodiment, in reproducing sound data stored in the CD-ROM 19,the sound data sent to the sound processing section 18 by a two-stepdivisional transfer. This makes it possible to reduce the number oftimes of access to the CD-ROM 19 even if the sound data has such a longlength as to form a sentence.

For example, if the sentence code “0002” is specified in a sound outputrequest, a comment “Pitcher Suzuki has so far made good pitching but hasnot been given any help from the batters yet.” is output. Whereas thesound data “pitcher” and “Suzuki” are stored in the sound memory 18 a,the sound data 94 “has so far made good pitching but has not been givenany help from the batters yet” is stored in the CD-ROM 19. The sounddata 94 corresponds to the set of Dir. “02” and No. “04” and has a datalength of 80 sectors (see FIG. 6). Where the storage capacity of each ofthe sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM 13 is 16 sectors, all ofthe sound data 94 cannot be transferred to the RAM 16 at one time.Divisional transfer is performed in this case.

FIG. 9 schematically shows the divisional transfer of sound data storedin the CD-ROM 19. As shown in FIG. 9, the sound data 94 stored in theCD-ROM 19 is divided into data 94 a, 94 b, 94 c, 94 d, . . . each havinga data length suitable for the storage capacity of each of the sounddata buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM 13, which are transferred to theRAM 13 sequentially. For example, if each of the sound data buffers 13 dand 13 e has a storage capacity of 16 sectors, the sound data 94 isdivided in units of 16 sectors.

In the first data transfer from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13, the firsttwo data 94 a and 94 b (from the head) of the sound data 94 aretransferred to the RAM 13.

The transferred data 94 a and 94 b are stored in the respective sounddata buffers 13 d and 13 e. Subsequently, data transfer from the CD-ROM19 to the RAM 13 is performed every time transfer of data stored in thesound data buffer 13 d or 13 e from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 ais completed.

In the second data transfer from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13, the thirddata 94 c (from the head) of the sound data 94 is transferred to the RAM13. The transferred data 94 c is stored in the sound data buffer 13 d,for example. In the third data transfer from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM13, the fourth data 94 d (from the head) of the sound data 94 istransferred to the RAM 13. The transferred data 94 d is stored in thesound data buffer 13 e, for example. Subsequently, divisional data aretransferred from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13 and stored in the two sounddata buffers 13 d and 13 e alternately. The data transfer from theCD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13 is repeated until all of the sound data 94 istransferred.

If data are stored in the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e of the RAM13, data transfer from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 a is started.The data stored in each of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e isdivided into data each having a data length suitable for the storagecapacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18 g. For example, in theexample of FIG. 9, the data stored in the sound data buffer 13 d isdivided into data 131 a, 131 b, 131 c, 131 d, . . . .

The divisional data is transferred to the sound memory 18 asequentially. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the storagecapacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18 g is one sector. In thiscase, data stored in each of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e isdivided in units of one sector.

For example, the data transfer from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 ais performed on a one-sector basis or a two-sector basis. If the sounddata 94 is monaural sound data, the data transfer is performed on aone-sector basis. If the sound data 94 is stereo sound data, the datatransfer is performed on a two-sector basis. FIG. 9 shows the case ofdata transfer on a two-sector basis.

In the first data transfer from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 a, thedata 131 a and 131 b in the sound data buffer 13 d, for example, aretransferred to the sound memory 18 a. In this example, the data 131 aand 131 b are for the left speaker 102 and the right speaker 103,respectively. The transferred data 131 a and 131 b are stored in thelocal buffers 18 d and 18 f in the sound memory 18 a, respectively.

After completion of the transfer of the data 131 a and 131 b to thesound memory 18 a, a sound corresponding to the data 131 a is outputfrom the left speaker 102 and a sound corresponding to the data 131 b isoutput from the right speaker 103.

The next data 131 c and 131 d are transferred to the sound memory 18 aduring reproduction of the sounds corresponding to the data 131 a and131 b. The transferred data 131 c and 131 d are stored in the localbuffers 18 e and 18 g in the sound memory 18 a, respectively.

After completion of the output of the sounds corresponding to the data131 a and 131 b, the local buffers as subjects of data reading areswitched and sounds corresponding to the data 131 c and 131 d areoutput. After completion of the output of the sounds corresponding tothe data 131 c and 131 d, the data following the 131 c and 131 d aretransferred from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 a. The transferreddata are stored in the local buffers 18 d and 18 f.

Subsequently, data transfer from the RAM 13 to the sound memory 18 a isperformed every time sound output based on data stored in the localbuffers 18 d-18 g is completed. Among data that are transferredsequentially, data for the left speaker 102 are stored in the localbuffers 18 d and 18 e alternately and data for the right speaker 103 arestored in the local buffers 18 f and 18 g alternately.

By performing the two-step transfer in the above manner, the number oftimes of access to the CD-ROM 19 can be made smaller than in a casewhere data is directly transferred from the CD-ROM 19 to the soundprocessing section 18. Where data is directly transferred from theCD-ROM 18 a to the sound memory 18 a in a divisional manner, the dataneeds to be divided into parts each having a short data length suitablefor the storage capacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18 g in thesound memory 18 a. In contrast, where data is transferred from theCD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13, satisfactory results are obtained by dividingthe data into parts each having a data length suitable for the storagecapacity of each of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM 13.

When all the data stored in the sound data buffer 13 d in the RAM 13 hasbeen transferred to the sound memory 18 a, divisional transfer of thedata stored in the other sound data buffer 13 e to the sound memory 18 ais started. While the data is transferred from the sound data buffer 13e, the next data is transferred from the CD-ROM 19 to the sound databuffer 13 d.

Now, a main process of a baseball game will be described. FIG. 10 is aflowchart showing a main process for advancing a game. First, at stepS1, a manipulation input of a user is accepted through the key-pad 50.At step S2, the baseball game is advanced in response to themanipulation input. For example, throwing motion of the pitcher isstarted in response to a manipulation input that commands throwing ofthe pitcher.

At step S3, a proper commentary statement structure is determined inaccordance with the state of progress of the game. Examples of the stateof progress of the game to be taken into consideration are an out count,a strike count, points of both teams, and bases on which runners exist.For example, when the pitcher has started throwing motion for the firstpitch, a commentary statement structure is determined by causing “haswound up for the first pitch” to follow the name of the pitcher. Thecommentary statement structure means a permutation of sound data to beused for outputting a live commentary sound. The permutation is definedby a combination and order of its elements.

After the commentary statement structure has been determined, at step S4a sound output request is issued that specifies a sentence codecorresponding to the determined commentary statement structure. Sentencecodes are correlated in advance with respective situations that mayoccur during a game. At step S5, it is judged whether the game should befinished. A judgment “the game should be finished” is made when, forexample, the user inputs a manipulation for finishing the game.

If the game should be finished (yes at step S5), the process of the gameis finished. If the game should not be finished (no at step S5), theprocess returns to step S1 and the game is continued.

Next, a sound output process according to the embodiment will bedescribed. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the sound output process. Thisprocess is executed when a sound output request is issued at step S4(see FIG. 10) of the main process for advancing the game.

When a sound output request has been issued, first, at step S11, anunselected sound data code corresponding to the sentence code isselected from the code information table. The sound data codes arearranged from the left in order of reproduction of the sentence, andhence are selected in order from the left at step S11.

At step S12, a storage destination of sound data corresponding to theselected sound data code is judged based on the sound data code, morespecifically, based on the storage area code that is correlated with thesound data code. The storage destination is the sound memory 18 a if thestorage area code is “01,” and is the CD-ROM 19 if the storage area codeis “02.”

If the storage destination is the CD-ROM 19 (the judgment result at stepS12 is the CD-ROM), processing of reproducing sound data in the CD-ROM19 is performed at step S13. The details of this step will be describedlater. After completion of the processing of reproducing the sound datain the CD-ROM 19, the process goes to step S16.

If the storage destination is the sound memory 18 a (the judgment resultat step S12 is the sound memory), at step S14 the head position of sounddata indicated by the sound data code that was selected at step 11 isjudged. The head position of the sound data can be judged by referringto the head address in the sound data management table 13 g (see FIG.5). At step S15, sound output is performed based on the sound data atthe position that was judged at step S14.

At step S16, it is judged whether there remains a sound data code thathas not been selected at step S11. For example, this is done in thefollowing manner. The order (the head is the left end in FIG. 4) ofsound data codes selected at step S11 is stored. If effective dataexists next to (i.e., on the right of) the sound data code just selectedat step S11, it is judged that an unselected sound data code remains.The term “effective data” means data having a storage area code “01” or“02”.

If there remains an unselected sound data code (yes at step S16), theprocess returns to step S11. If there remains no unselected sound datacode (no at step S16), the sound output process is finished.

Next, the process for reproducing sound data in the CD-ROM 19 will bedescribed. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process for reproducingsound data in the CD-ROM 19. First, at step S21, the head position ofsound data indicated by the sound data code that was selected at stepS11 (see FIG. 11) is judged. This can be done by referring to the headsector number in the sound data management table 13 h. The data in arange indicated by the data length of the sound data and starting fromthe position that was judged at step S21 is made a subject of transfer.

At step S22, of the transfer subject sound data on the CD-ROM 19, datathat amounts to the storage capacity of the two sound data buffers 13 dand 13 f (i.e., two times the storage capacity of each sound databuffer) is transferred from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13. The transferreddata is stored in the two sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM13.

The sound data to be transferred is specified by the sound data code.The head sector number corresponding to the code specified by thereproduction request can be acquired by referring to the sound datamanagement table 13 h. One sector in the CD-ROM 19 can be identified bythe acquired head sector number. The identified sound data istransferred to the RAM 13. The first part of the sound data that hasbeen transferred to the RAM 13 is stored in one sound data buffer (e.g.,the sound data buffer 13 d) and the remaining part of the sound datathat has not been stored in the one sound data buffer is stored in theother sound data buffer (e.g., the sound data buffer 13 e).

In the first data transfer of a series of data transfers from the CD-ROM19 to the RAM 13, data that amounts to the storage capacity of two sounddata buffers (e.g., 32 sectors) is transferred. If the data length ofsound data is shorter than a data length corresponding to two sound databuffers, all of the sound data is transferred. The data length of sounddata can be judged by referring to the data length column in the sounddata management table 13 h.

After completion of one transfer of sound data to the RAM 13, at stepS23 processing of reproducing the sound data in one sound data buffer isperformed. The details of this step will be described later.

After completion of the processing of reproducing the sound data in theone sound data buffer, it is judged at step S24 whether all of the sounddata to be reproduced (i.e., the sound data that was specified by thesound output request) has been transferred. If all of the sound data tobe reproduced has been transferred (yes at step S24), the process goesto step S16 shown in FIG. 11.

If there remains data that has not been transferred yet in the sounddata to be reproduced (no at step S24), at step S25 sound data thatamounts the storage capacity of one of the sound data buffers 13 d and13 e in the RAM 13 is read from the CD-ROM 19 and transferred to the RAM13. The transferred data is stored in the sound data buffer the datatransfer from which to the sound memory 18 a at step S23 has justcompleted. After the execution of step S25 has completed, the processgoes to step S23. Because of the double buffer structure, the datatransfer at step S25 and the data transfer at step S23 can be performedin parallel. Therefore, when the data transfer has started at step S25,execution of step S23 can be started without waiting for the end of thedata transfer.

Next, the process for reproducing sound data in a sound data buffer willbe described in detail. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the process forreproducing sound data in a sound data buffer. This process is startedafter execution of step S22 or S25 has completed.

First, at step S31, one of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in theRAM 13 is selected as a subject of data reading. For example, the sounddata buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM 13 are selected alternately as asubject of data reading in order of storage of sound data.

At step S32, the sound data stored in the reading subject sound databuffer is divided and resulting divisional data are transferredsequentially to the sound memory 18 a in order of reproduction. Thetransferred data are stored in the local buffers. The sound data storedin the sound data buffer 13 d or 13 e is divided into data having a sizesuitable for the storage capacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18g, for example, one sector.

If the sound data is monaural data, one divisional data is transferredeach time. On the other hand, if the sound data is stereo data,divisional data for the left and right speakers, that is, two divisionaldata, are transferred each time.

After the data transfer has been performed at step S32, at step S33sound output is performed based on the data stored in the local buffers18 d-18 g. After completion of the sound output at step S33, it isjudged at step S34 whether all the data in the sound data buffer that isthe subject of the data transfer to the sound memory 18 a has beentransferred. If the transfer of the transfer subject sound data hasfinished (yes at step S34), the process goes to step S24 shown in FIG.12. If the transfer of the transfer subject sound data has not finishedyet (no at step S34), the process returns to step S32, where the nextdata transfer is performed.

FIG. 14 shows an example of a displayed picture of a baseball gameaccording to the embodiment. A pitcher 71, a batter 72, and a catcher 73are displayed on the display screen 101. The catcher 73 is shown in asemitransparent manner. A strike zone 61, a cursor 62 to be used forspecifying a throwing position, and a cursor 63 to be used forspecifying a batting position are displayed in front of the catcher 73.

In this embodiment, sound data are stored in the CD-ROM 19 and can bereproduced by reading those from the CD-ROM 19 when necessary. Thismakes it possible to perform a live commentary in a very realisticmanner. For example, in the example of FIG. 14, the pitcher is wound upand is about to throw a ball 81. In this state, a sound output requestdesignating the code “001,” for example is issued. In response to thesound output request, the sound data 94 is transferred to the RAM 13 ina divisional manner. Then, the sound data 94 is transferred to the soundmemory 18 a in a divisional manner. As a result, a sound “Suzuki threwthe third pitch with a nothing-two count.” is reproduced. If a soundoutput request designating the code “002” is issued, a sound “PitcherSuzuki has so far made good pitching but has not been given any helpfrom the batters yet.” is reproduced.

As described above, according to the embodiment, a sound of a commentarystatement or a comment including a subject and a predicate can bereproduced during a video game. Further, by storing sound data of termsto become a subject in the sound memory 18 a, the number of times ofaccess to the CD-ROM 19 can be reduced. In general, a commentarystatement or a comment is made in the form of “Someone did something.”Therefore, by storing sound data of terms corresponding to “someone”such as player names and team names in the sound memory 18 a, sound datahaving high access frequencies are stored in the sound memory 18 a. As aresult, the number of times of access to the CD-ROM 19 at the time ofsound outputs can be reduced.

In this embodiment, sound data stored in the CD-ROM 19 is divided anddivisional data are sequentially stored in the RAM 13. Sound data storedin the RAM 13 is also divided and divisional data are sequentiallytransferred to the sound memory 18 a of the sound processing section 18.

This two-step divisional transfer makes it possible to reduce the numberof times of access to the CD-ROM 19, which decreases the probabilitythat reading of sound data and reading of some other data (e.g.,background image data) occur at the same time. As a result, even if alarge amount of sound data is stored in the CD-ROM 19, it does notobstruct the processing of advancing a game. That is, it becomespossible to advance the game smoothly.

The timing of the divisional transfer according to the embodiment is asfollows. Data is transferred from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13 at a timepoint when transfer, to the sound memory 18 a, of data that amounts tothe storage capacity of one of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e inthe RAM 13 has finished. Data is transferred from the RAM 13 to thesound memory 18 a at a time point when sound reproduction based on datain one local buffer in the sound memory 18 a has finished.

The number of transfers of the divisional transfer according to theembodiment is as follows: In the case of a transfer from the CD-ROM 19to the RAM 13, in the first transfer, data that amounts to the totalstorage capacity of the two sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in the RAM13 (e.g., 32 sectors) is transferred at one time. Thereafter, data thatamounts to the storage capacity of each of the sound data buffers 13 dand 13 e (e.g., 16 sectors) is transferred.

Therefore, in the case of a transfer from the CD-ROM 19 to the RAM 13,the number of transfers is equal to a value obtained by subtracting 1from a value obtained by dividing the data length of subject sound databy the storage capacity of each of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 ein the RAM 13 (decimals of the quotient are raised to the next wholenumber). For example, where the storage capacity of each of the sounddata buffers 13 d and 13 e is 16 sectors, sound data of 72 sectors istransferred by four divisional transfers.

In the case of a monaural sound, the number of transfers from the RAM 13to the sound memory 18 a is equal to a value obtained by dividing thestorage capacity of each of the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e in theRAM 13 by the storage capacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18 g inthe sound memory 18 a. For example, where the storage capacity of eachof the sound data buffers 13 d and 13 e is 16 sectors and the storagecapacity of each of the local buffers 18 d-18 g is one sector, sounddata is transferred by 16 divisional transfers. In the case of a stereosound, the number of transfers is half of that of a monaural sound data.

Although the embodiment is directed to a baseball game as an example ofa sport games associated with the reproduction of sound such as a livecommentary, the invention is not limited to it. The invention can alsobe applied to games of other sport games such as soccer, basketball,American football, tennis, and ice hockey as long as processing ofreproducing sound data is performed.

The invention can be applied to game-dedicated machines, arcademachines, personal computers, personal digital assistants, cellulartelephones, etc.

Although, in the embodiment a program for implementing the embodiment isrecorded on a CD-ROM or hard disks, the invention is not limited to sucha case. A program may be recorded on any of other computer-readablerecording media such as an MO disc and a DVD. Where a program isdownloaded to hard disks, a commercial network, the Internet, anintranet, an extranet, or the like may be used as the network 111.

As described above, in the invention, among sound data that constitutesentences, sound data that can be a subject are stored in the soundmemory. Therefore, the number of times of access to a large-capacityrecording medium can be made small in the case of outputting sound of arealistic live commentary or comments. As a result, the inventionprovides a computer-readable recording medium on which a program isrecorded, a program, a live commentary processing apparatus and methodwhich make it possible to read out sound data efficiently.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-readable recording medium on which aprogram for processing a live commentary in a video game is recorded,the program causing a computer to: judge states of a situation in avideo game; determine a combination and order of at least one sound datanecessary to commentate in accordance with the judged states from amongsound data stored in a distributed manner as units of live commentarystatements; recognize storage locations of the at least one sound databased on information stored in advance to be used for recognizingstorage locations of the respective sound data; commentate by readingthe at least one sound data from the recognized storage locations in thedetermined order; wherein the sound data are stored in a distributedmanner in a first recording area and a second recording area, the sounddata being stored in the second recording area when the video gamestarts, and wherein when the at least one sound data is read from thefirst recording area, the at least one sound data is transferred to thesecond recording area and commentating is performed based on the atleast one sound data transferred to the second recording.
 2. Therecording medium according to claim 1, wherein the at least one sounddata is read from a first recording area and is transferred to a secondrecording area via a third recording area having at least one buffer. 3.The recording medium according to claim 2, wherein when the at least onesound data is transferred to the third recording area, the at least onesound data is divided into data each having a data length suitable for astorage capacity of each buffer in the third recording area and aretransferred on a divisional data basis.
 4. The recording mediumaccording to claim 2, wherein the second recording area is provided withat least one buffer, and wherein when the at least one sound data istransferred from the third recording area to the second recording area,the at least one sound data stored in the third recording area isdivided into data each having a data length suitable for a storagecapacity of each buffer in the second storage area and are transferredon a divisional data basis.
 5. The recording medium according to claim4, wherein when the at least one sound data is transferred from thethird recording area to the second recording area, data that amounts totwo times the storage capacity of each buffer in the second recordingarea is transferred in one transfer when the at least one sound datacomprises stereo sound data.
 6. A live commentary processing apparatus,comprising: a recording medium on which a program for realizing livecommentary processing in a video game is recorded; and a computer thatreads at least part of the program from the recording medium andexecutes it, the computer executing, by reading at least part of theprogram from the recording medium: judging states of a situation in avideo game; determining a combination and order of at least one sounddata necessary to commentate in accordance with the judged states fromamong sound data stored in a distributed manner as units of livecommentary statements; recognizing storage locations of the at least onesound data based on information stored in advance to be used forrecognizing storage locations of the respective sound data; commentatingby reading the at least one sound data from the recognized storagelocations in the determined order; wherein the sound data are stored ina distributed manner in a first recording area and a second recordingarea, the sound data being stored in the second recording area when thevideo game starts, and wherein when the at least one sound data is readfrom the first recording area, the at least one sound data istransferred to the second recording area and commentating is performedbased on the at least one sound data transferred to the second recordingarea.
 7. The live commentary processing apparatus according to claim 6,wherein the at least one sound data is read from a first recording areaand is transferred to a second recording area via a third recording areahaving at least one buffer.
 8. The live commentary processing apparatusaccording to claim 7, wherein when the at least one sound data istransferred to the third recording area, the at least one sound data isdivided into data each having a data length suitable for a storagecapacity of each buffer in the third recording area and is transferredon a divisional data basis.
 9. The live commentary processing apparatusaccording to claim 7, wherein the second recording area is provided withat least one buffer, and wherein when the at least one sound data istransferred from the third recording area to the second recording area,the at least one sound data stored in the third recording area isdivided into data each having a data length suitable for a storagecapacity of each buffer in the second storage area and is transferred ona divisional data basis.
 10. The live commentary processing apparatusaccording to claim 9, wherein when the at least one sound data istransferred from the third recording area to the second recording area,data that amounts to two times the storage capacity of each buffer inthe second recording area is transferred in one transfer when the atleast one sound data comprises stereo sound data.
 11. A live commentaryprocessing method for processing a live commentary in a video game,comprising: judging states of a situation in a video game; determining acombination and order of at least one sound data necessary to commentatein accordance with the judged states from among sound data stored in adistributed manner as units of live commentary statements; recognizingstorage locations of the at least one sound data based on informationstored in advance to be used for recognizing storage locations of therespective sound data; commentating by reading the at least one sounddata from the recognized storage locations in the determined order;wherein the sound data is stored in a distributed manner in a firstrecording area and a second recording area, the sound data being storedin the second recording area when the video game starts, and whereinwhen the at least one sound data is read from the first recording area,the at least one sound data is transferred to the second recording areaand commentating is performed based on the at least one sound datatransferred to the second recording area.
 12. The live commentaryprocessing method according to claim 11, wherein the at least one sounddata is read from a first recording area and is transferred to a secondrecording area via a third recording area having at least one buffer.13. The live commentary processing method according to claim 12, whereinwhen the at least one sound data is transferred to the third recordingarea, the at least one sound data is divided into data each having adata length suitable for a storage capacity of each buffer in the thirdrecording area and is transferred on a divisional data basis.
 14. Thelive commentary processing method according to claim 12, wherein thesecond recording area is provided with at least one buffer, and whereinwhen the at least one sound data is transferred from the third recordingarea to the second recording area, the at least one sound data stored inthe third recording area is divided into data each having a data lengthsuitable for a storage capacity of each buffer in the second storagearea and is transferred on a divisional data basis.
 15. The livecommentary processing method according to claim 14, wherein when the atleast one sound data is transferred from the third recording area to thesecond recording area, data that amounts to two times the storagecapacity of each buffer in the second recording area is transferred inone transfer when the at least one sound data comprises stereo sounddata.
 16. A computer-readable recording medium on which a program forprocessing a live commentary in a video game is recorded, the programcausing a computer to: judge states during processing of a video game;determine, in accordance with the judged states, code information fromamong pieces of code information that are provided in advance, each ofwhich correlates situations that may occur in the game and a combinationand order of at least one sound data; and commentate by reading at leastone sound data indicated by the determined code information in an orderindicated by the determined code information.
 17. A live commentaryprocessing apparatus, comprising: a recording medium on which a programfor realizing sound output processing in a video game is recorded; and acomputer that reads at least part of the program from the recordingmedium and executes it, the computer executing, by reading at least partof the program from the recording medium: judging states duringprocessing of a video game; determining, in accordance with the judgedstates, code information from among pieces of code information that areprovided in advance, each of which correlates situations that may occurin the game and a combination and order of at least one sound data; andcommentating by reading at least one sound data indicated by thedetermined code information in an order indicated by the determined codeinformation.